Nottestad Notches Feature Win

By Andrew Schaller

JEFFERSON, WI (Saturday, May 7, 2011) Dale Nottestad of Cambridge endured a battle lasting most of the race to pick up the win in the Radio Doctor 50 lap Late Model feature at Jefferson Speedway. Nottestad spent the better part of 35 laps racing hard with John Ovadal to eventually gain the lead and see the checkers first.

Ty James and Chad Stevens paced the field of 18 drivers to the drop of the green with Stevens taking the initial lead entering turn one of the opening lap. James dropped back into a battle for second with Ryan Zielski while Ovadal watched from fourth. Zielski claimed the second spot on lap two with Ovadal in tow for third. Ovadal got under Zielski on lap six to take away the second position as Nottestad remained in Ovadal’s tracks. A lap later, Ovadal was challenging Stevens at the point. After a brief battle, Ovadal claimed the lead with Nottestad continuing to follow him to the front. The first of two cautions waved on lap 15 for fluid on the racing surface. As racing resumed, it was Ovadal showing the way with Nottestad filling up his rear view mirror. Nottestad began to apply heavy pressure to the leader as he got a good look to the inside of Ovadal entering turn one on each circuit. But Nottestad was unable to make the move stick as Ovadal would pull back ahead down the backstretch. Nottestad tried several times to get a run in the low groove until the second caution waved on lap 31. Once the green flag flew again, Nottestad returned to work on Ovadal. On lap 32, Nottestad got a solid run on the inside entering turn one. The duo raced door to door as Nottestad began to inch the nose of his racer ahead of Ovadal. Each lap Nottestad gained a little more until finally clearing for the top spot on lap 43. Ovadal tried to return the challenge, but Nottestad opened up a four car length advantage on the way to the stripe for the win. Ovadal settled for second followed by Zielski, Jason Erickson and Chris Quam.

Jefferson’s Curt Thompson led every lap of the 30 lap Sportsman main event en route to picking up the victory. Thompson grabbed control from the pole on lap one as fellow front row starter Adam Bleskan pulled in line behind him. Terry Wangsness managed to get past Bleskan on lap seven as Thompson continued to open up a large lead. Thompson’s advantage was erased by caution on lap 12. On the restart, Wangsness made an attempt to shoot past Thompson for the lead, but Thompson kept him at bay as the pair of drivers pulled away from the pack. James Helmer and Jay Kalbus made their way into the top five, eventually facing off in the closing laps for third. But Thompson continued to show the way as they cruised past the checkers. Wangsness finished second followed by Kalbus, Helmer and Jason Thoma.

Kyle Stark of Waterloo capped off his perfect night by laying claim to the 20 lap International feature event. Stark completed the clean sweep on the evening by capturing quick time in qualifying, winning his heat and claiming the feature. Stark also set a new track record in qualifying to make the night a little sweeter. Jason Kubicz and Waylin Willman led the field to green with Willman leading early on lap one. Peter Shelley pulled into second with Matt McKinney riding in third. McKinney dove under Shelley on lap five with Willman still at the point. Stark was shadowing the top five by lap ten as he continued to move forward. Stark dropped to the low side as he fired up to third on lap 11. A lap later, Willman drifted a little high entering turn three allowing Stark to shoot into the lead. Stark immediately began to stretch his advantage. Kyle Smith made his way to second on lap 14, but Stark was already too far in front to catch. As the checkers flew, it was Stark with the win followed by Smith, Mark English, Casey Strese and Neil Higgins.

In Hobby Stock action, it was Larry Moen of Sun Prairie picking up the win in the 25 lap feature event. Kyle Chwala took the early lead on lap two with Moen following into second. Moen began to apply pressure to the leader on lap seven. Moen got to the inside of Chwala on lap nine and pulled into the lead a lap later. Allen McBride followed Moen into second and quickly made a move on the new leader. But Moen stayed strong as he began to open up a healthy lead. With two laps remaining, Chwala spun on the front stretch to bring out the only caution period of the race. On the restart, a jailbreak ensued for the second position as Jim Tate, Brent Gergen and McBride drove three wide down the front stretch. Tate emerged with the spot as Gergen and McBride made contact sending Gergen spinning. But Moen stayed strong out front to get the win with Tate, Tony Ciano, McBride and Dustin Ward rounding out the top five.

Jefferson’s Rob Lange came home victorious in the 10 lap Road Warrior main event. Tina Stephenson and Mike White made up row one at the start. Stephenson grabbed the lead on lap one as Roger Stephenson sliced up to second. On lap two, Tina Stephenson entered turn one a little high allowing Scott Pauls to pull up to the inside while Roger Stephenson went to the outside. Roger emerged with the lead on lap three with Bill Sweeney in tow for second. Bill Reynolds joined the fight at the front on lap five, but Reynolds and Sweeney made contact a lap later forcing both competitors to retire from the event. As the caution came out for Reynolds and Sweeney, Roger Stephenson made contact with a lapped car sending him spinning into the turn one wall and ending his night as well. Lange inherited the top spot with only four laps remaining. As racing resumed, Lange cruised to the win followed by Scott Pauls, Kevin Pauls, Tina Stephenson and White.

Beaver Dam’s Phil Wuesthoff rounded out the evening’s racing action by winning the 20 lap Bandit feature event. Bryan Gottschalk led early from the pole with Dave Schmidt right behind in second. They continued to run first and second until caution waved on lap 12 for a stalled competitor. On the restart, Wuesthoff charged into third and continued to use the high groove to take the second spot for himself as well. On lap 15, Wuesthoff got under Gottschalk and took away the top position entering turn three. Keith Erickson followed Wuesthoff into second, but couldn’t catch the new leader. At the checkers, it was Wuesthoff for the win with Erickson, Gottschalk, Mike Heimann and Nick Schmidt completing the top five.

Next Saturday, May 14, is a full program in all division highlighted by the Newville Auto Salvage 50 lap Late Model feature as well as the Best Appearing Car Contest in all divisions. Time trials begin at 5pm with racing at 7pm sharp. Jefferson Speedway is located halfway between Jefferson and Cambridge on Hwy 18. Please visit www.jeffersonspeedway.com for more information.

Jefferson Speedway Race Summary
Late Model-
Radio Doctor 50 lap Feature Results- 1) 51 Dale Nottestad, Cambridge 2) 71 John Ovadal, Watertown 3) 21 Ryan Zielski, Oconomowoc 4) 94 Jason Erickson, Fort Atkinson 5) 4 Chris Quam, Stoughton 6) 82 Chad Stevens, Orfordville 7) 16 Luke Westenberg, Jefferson 8) 27 Ty James, Oconomowoc 9) 33 Dylan Schuyler, Jefferson 10) 52 Steve Dobbratz, Rio 11) 44 Roger Behlke, Jefferson 12) 8 Shaun Scheel, Lake Mills 13) 5 Casey Johnson, Stoughton 14) 29 Scott Lindsay, Dousman 15) 61 Jerry Eckhardt, Johnson Creek 16) 87 Kyle Jarlsberg, Jefferson 17) 27 Dan Chesmore, Janesville 18) 21 Brandon Pendleton, Helenville
Fast Qualifier- 94 Jason Erickson—14.174 seconds
Last Chance- 29 Scott Lindsay, 33 Dylan Schuyler, 27 Dan Chesmore, 44 Roger Behlke
Consy- 7 Jack Rabey, 1 Jody Krueger
Heat Winners- 1) 7 Jack Rabey 2) 13 Rob Myers 3) 82 Chad Stevens 4) 71 John Ovadal

Sportsman-
Feature Results- 1) 66 Curt Thompson, Jefferson 2) 55 Terry Wangsness, Jefferson 3) 27 Jay Kalbus, Madison 4) 7 James Helmer, Beaver Dam 5) 6 Jason Thoma, Jefferson 6) 51 Kurt Kleven, Deerfield 7) 11 Adam Bleskan, Menomonee Falls 8) 22 Brady Lilly, Milton 9) 2 Mark DePorter, Fort Atkinson 10) 4 Jim Taylor, Stoughton 11) 26 Scott Riedner, Waunakee 12) 71 Jason Dunn, Sun Prairie 13) 19 Dan Schmidt, Farmington 14) 15 Will Rece, Stoughton 15) 32 Greg Staude, Jefferson 16) 23 Randy Breunig, Columbus
Fast Qualifier- 27 Jay Kalbus—14.938 seconds NEW TRACK RECORD
Last Chance- 19 Dan Schmidt, 15 Will Rece, 71 Jason Dunn, 32 Greg Staude
Heat Winners- 1) 1 Levi Cloute 2) 55 Terry Wangsness

International-
Feature Results- 1) 92 Kyle Stark, Waterloo 2) 90 Kyle Smith, Lake Mills 3) 57 Mark English, Edgerton 4) 23 Casey Strese, Jefferson 5) 66 Neil Higgins, Watertown 6) 5 Peter Shelley, Edgerton 7) 95 Matt McKinney, Fort Atkinson 8) 29 Waylin Willman, Janesville 9) 26 Mike Lambert, Madison 10) 67 John Handeland, Jefferson 11) 11 Jason Kubicz, Whitewater 12) 27 James Bell, Brodhead 13) 6 Dale Smith, Lake Mills 14) 67 Joe Cross, Jefferson 15) ONO Keith Bell, Brodhead 16) 75 Travis Schneeberg, Cottage Grove 17) 25 Darren Brown, Jefferson 18) 31 Ken Au, Jefferson
Fast Qualifier- 92 Kyle Stark—16.122 seconds NEW TRACK RECORD
Last Chance- 67 Joe Cross, 27 James Bell, 25 Darren Brown, ONO Keith Bell
Heat Winners- 1) 27 James Bell 2) 90 Kyle Smith 3) 92 Kyle Stark

Hobby Stock-
Feature Results- 1) 10 Larry Moen, Sun Prairie 2) 27 Jim Tate, Watertown 3) 86 Tony Ciano, Janesville 4) 62 Allen McBride 5) 9 Dustin Ward, Waterloo 6) 22 Chester Williams, Waukesha 7) 11 Steven Sauer, Waterloo 8) 77 Sean Watters, Jefferson 9) 17 Bill Bush, Jefferson 10) 72 Gary Paulick, Waukesha 11) 22 Kyle Chwala, Lake Mills 12) 71 Jamie Dunn, Sun Prairie 13) 2 Brent Gergen, Jefferson 14) 7 Jim Wolf, Watertown 15) 55 Lucas Buckingham, Whitewater 16) 19 Zach Schmidt, Johnson Creek
Fast Qualifier- 9 Dustin Ward—16.288 seconds
Last Chance- 17 Bill Bush, 71 Jamie Dunn, 55 Lucas Buckingham, 7 Jim Wolf
Heat Winners- 1) 22 Kyle Chwala 2) 62 Allen McBride

Road Warrior-
Feature Results- 1) 135 Rob Lange, Jefferson 2) 18 Scott Pauls, McFarland 3) 78 Kevin Pauls, McFarland 4) 33 Mike White, Janesville 5) 88 Tina Stephenson, Cambridge 6) 17 Kyle Dopkins 7) 88 Roger Stephenson, Cambridge 8) 71 Bill Sweeney, Janesville 9) 6 Bill Reynolds, Watertown
Fast Qualifier- 135 Rob Lange—17.141 seconds
Heat Winner- 6 Bill Reynolds

Bandit-
Feature Results- 1) 99 Phil Wuesthoff, Beaver Dam 2) 03 Keith Erickson, Columbus 3) 31 Bryan Gottschalk, Jefferson 4) 31 Michael Heimann, Waunakee 5) 09 Nick Schmidt, Menomonee 6) 37 Seth Reamer, Columbus 7) 1 Kyle Riedner, Waunakee 8) 93 Heather Stark, Waterloo 9) 43 Mitch Brockway, Ixonia 10) 7 Dennis Johnson, Lake Mills 11) 34 Dustin Yanke, 12) 53 Dylan Buckingham, Whitewater 13) 62 Brandon Johnson, Avalon 14) 52 Brad Birzer, Ixonia 15) 98 Felicia Dewey, Beloit 16) 36 Erik Bennett, Beloit 17) 10 Dave Schmidt, Menomonee 18) 111 Devon Dixon, Janesville
Fast Qualifier- 93 Heather Stark—14.276 seconds
Last Chance- 98 Felicia Dewey, 36 Erik Bennett, 52 Brad Birzer, 62 Brandon Johnson
Heat Winners- 1) 11 Cory Jansen 2) 18 Robby Robinson 3) 10 Dave Schmidt